Scott Gordon expects development, wins this season

MICHAEL KUBEL / THE MORNING CALL

Scott Gordon was formally introduced as the new coach of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms at the PPL Center in Allentown on Monday, July 20. The team held its first practice of the season Saturday at the Rink at Lehigh Valley in Whitehall. -//// MICHAEL KUBEL / The Morning Call ---- Monday July 20, 2015

Scott Gordon was formally introduced as the new coach of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms at the PPL Center in Allentown on Monday, July 20. The team held its first practice of the season Saturday at the Rink at Lehigh Valley in Whitehall. -//// MICHAEL KUBEL / The Morning Call ---- Monday July 20, 2015 (MICHAEL KUBEL / THE MORNING CALL)

Of The Morning Call

Check out what Scott Gordon expects from the Lehigh Valley Phantoms this season

Scott Gordon ran his first practice as new head coach of the Lehigh Valley Phantoms on Saturday morning, but instead of doing it in the comfy expanse of the PPL Center in Allentown, he ran it at the Rink at Lehigh Valley because of a Professional Bull Riding show at PPL Center.

The Phantoms have a wide range of talent assigned to them by the parent club Philadelphia Flyers, ranging from first-year pro Samuel Morin, a 6-foot-7 defenseman, to intimidating veteran Jay Rosehill, who led the team in fights and penalty minutes last season.

They added eight more to the team on Saturday when the Flyers reassigned center Nick Cousins and defensemen Shayne Gostisbehere and Robert Hagg, along with center Tim Brent, right wings Chris Conner and Aaron Palushaj, defenseman Davis Drewiske and goalie Jason LaBarbera, the last five all of whom cleared waivers and were reassigned.

Saturday's practice operated with six offensive lines in two hour-long practices, doubling up two of those lines to better implement Gordon's system.

Gordon knows there is a balance between developing talent and winning in the AHL, but has a desire to push the pace and make sure each player knows the Plan A, B and C of his particular position.

The new coach of the Phantoms said that in addition to footwork, the most important aspects for the young defensemen on the roster – considered the future of the Flyers' success – include making sure they play from the inside out, not the outside in, and ice awareness.

"The decision-making process," Gordon said. "Good reads. Getting a comfort level in the middle of the ice to make plays. Going back for a puck and knowing what your escape options are, to be able to move the puck quickly, finding those options, basically a checklist of what to do when you get the puck under those conditions."

Gordon said a lot of that is understanding the technique that needs to be employed based on a proper read of the situation like the position of your body and stick with relationship to where the puck is. Sometimes, he said, there are times when there won't be a play to make, so they need to understand what the smart play is.

The Phantoms had problems putting the puck in the net last season, and hoping that new offensive personnel will change that problem is more wishful thinking than reality.

"Scoring goals, you can't always control that," Gordon said. "All you can do is put yourself in a position that gives you the best opportunity to score goals."

"A lot of times, that's all it takes to become a great goal scorer," Gordon said. "Matt Molson, who played for me [with the New York Islanders] was one of those guys who could score from the top of the circle, but those goals sometimes need a little bit of luck, a little bit of space from the defense, time to get shots off."

He said when those factors fail, the best way to succeed is to drive to the net and get your nose dirty in the greasy areas, which is what Molson was willing to do. Pucks would hit him and go in, or hit the goalie and he'd get the rebound, or just be there and get the tip-in.

"I think we want all of our players to do the grunt work," he said. "The skill work, that sometimes is just a gift. At the end of the day, even the best offensive players go cold for a while in those areas. If you want to be successful and have some numbers, you have to get to the net."

This year's goalies for the Phantoms, 6-foot-3 veteran Jason LaBarbera and 6-foot-6 second-year pro Anthony Stolarz are both tall, and having a tall veteran for Stolarz to consult may speed his development, but the 5-10 Gordon, a former goalie, doesn't buy into the idea that taller goalies take longer to develop.

"If they've gotten to the pro level, they've got a foundation that should allow them to have some kind of success," Gordon said. "Maybe a smaller goalie has to be a little smaller because he can't afford to be reckless, but at the end of the day, they all have to have a good foundation."

Gordon got to see new goalie coach Kim Dillabaugh and goaltender development coach Brady Robinson in action at training camp. Both goalie coaches will be working with LaBarbera and Stolarz throughout the season, and Gordon thinks that will help the Phantoms pair stay sharp and improve.

The Phantoms only have a few days of practice before their preseason opener 7 p.m. Wednesday in Wilkes-Barre.

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Single game tickets on sale Monday: Single game tickets for Lehigh Valley Phantoms home games at the PPL Center go on sale 10 a.m. Monday.

The Phantoms begin their 20th anniversary season with the season opening game at home 7:05 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 10 with the Syracuse Crunch, but open their home exhibition season 7:05 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 3 at the PPL Center with the Hartford Wolfpack.

This is the second season the Phantoms are playing in the Lehigh Valley after spending the previous five seasons in Glens Falls, N.Y., following the demolition of their original home in Philadelphia's Spectrum.

Tickets can be purchased by logging on to pplcenter.com, by calling 610-347-TIXX [8499], or by visiting the Mealey's Furniture Box Office at PPL Center (701 Hamilton Street).

"Opening Night is just two weeks away," Phantoms executive vice president Chris Porreca said. "The excitement of another hockey season is starting to take over the Lehigh Valley."

"The tremendous support we've experienced from season tickets and groups this summer is going to help produce even more sellouts than we had last year," Porreca said. "We strongly encourage fans to purchase tickets on the 28th to make sure they get to the games they want this season."

The Phantoms play 38 home games during the regular season, plus a pair of home exhibition games Oct. 3 and 4.